New Delhi, As many as 24.04 lakh TB patients were notified in 2019, a 14 per cent increase as compared to the previous year, the annual TB Report 2020 revealed.

Key achievements in the report, released by Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Wednesday, included reduction in the number of missing cases to 2.9 lakh cases as against more than 10 lakh in 2017.

Private sector notifications also increased by 35 per cent with 6.78 lakh TB patients notified. Due to easy availability of molecular diagnostics, the proportion of children diagnosed with TB increased to 8 per cent in 2019 compared to 6 per cent in 2018.

Provision of HIV testing for all notified TB patients increased from 67 per cent in 2018 to 81 per cent in 2019. Expansion of treatment services has resulted in a 12 per cent improvement in the treatment success rate of notified patients.

For 2019, it was 81 per cent compared to 69 per cent in 2018. More than 4.5 lakh DOT Centres provide treatment covering almost every village across the country.

NIKSHAY also expanded the provision of four Direct Benefit Transfers (DBT) schemes of the programme - Nikshay Poshan Yojana (NPY) to TB patients, the incentive to Treatment, incentive to Private Providers and transport incentive to TB patients in the notified tribal areas.

Harsh Vardhan commended the collective efforts of all who were involved in preparing the report.

"As captured in the Annual report, there has been commendable achievement on various parameters of TB Control in the country. The ranking will surely encourage all the states/UTs to improve their performance to attain their targets," he said.

"Accurate diagnosis followed by prompt appropriate treatment is vital for ending TB. The National TB Elimination Programme (NTEP) has expanded both the laboratory network as well as diagnostic facilities to cover the entire country," he added.

To End TB by 2025, expansion of TB services and addressing determinants of TB that are beyond health, through a multi-sectoral approach is necessary, he said.

Highlighting the crucial aspect of stigma against TB patients in the country, which is hampering the fight against this disease, Harsh Vardhan said: "We as a nation, need to come together, to fight against TB and the stigma surrounding it so that every TB patient can seek care with dignity and without discrimination. The community must act as a wellspring of support and comfort for the patient."

Underscoring the crucial contribution that the private sector can make to the national TB programme by mandatory TB notification and providing quality TB care, he added that with both collaborative and regulatory steps, the country has notified 6,64,584 TB patients in 2019 in the private sector which amounts to a 22 per cent increase in TB notifications as compared to 2018.

In the categories of larger states with more than 50 lakh population, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh were awarded as best performing States.

In the category of smaller states with less than 50 lakh population, Tripura and Nagaland were awarded. In the category of Union Territory, Dadara and Nagar Haveli, and Daman & Diu were chosen as the best performers.